TOPIC: Issue management process

HEllo,
is there any management process to deal with issues when happened?
should we inform the stakeholders first before updating the issue log?

Hamza,

From a practical perspective, your question is a political one and will depend on what the "issue" is. Some (most) stakeholders will not want to be informed of every minor issue, but only issues that impact the one of the project baselines, and sometimes then only the schedule or cost baselines. Likewise, they may only require immediate notification for issues that impact the baselines by more than 10-20%. It depends on the organization.

Honestly, for my preparation for the PMP exam, when confronted with the "What do you do first?" questions, most break towards the PM updating something or going to change management first, then informing stakeholders. One of the more savvy moderators should chime in on this for a definitive answer though.

Harry

There isn't a specific process that is centered around handling issues, but issue logs are an output/outcome of the direct and manage project work and monitor and control project work processes. I think the first thing to do when there is a current condition or situation that may negatively impact the project objectives, is to capture it in an issue log. This is the first step that needs to be done just to be sure that the issue is being tracked so that it won't be overlooked and will be addressed or accounted for - regardless of how large or small the issue is. The next step is to fill in more information about the issue such as:

1. Priority - High, medium, low (or other scale of your choosing)
2. Impact on objectives - scope, schedule, cost, quality, etc.
3. Escalation Needed (Y/N) - This is in line with what Harry mentioned. Some issues will need to be escalated and /or communicated to management / the sponsor(s) depending on the type and the magnitude of the issue. This escalation process should be detailed in the communications management plan.
4. To whom the issue is assigned to for resolution/follow up
5. The planned response to the issue
6. The final resolution / comments
7. Date Resolved

Thank you

One other thing to note that i think is important. Issues logs provide an opportunity to ensure the issue is properly documented and connected to a stakeholder that has either raised the issue or is impacted by the issues. As others have mentioned, depending on the severity of the issue on the project, there may be huge implications on scope, schedule, cost, risk, etc. Issues logs have come in handy many times for me when trying to justify scope, budget, and schedule changes to my clients.